A thrilling journey into the mind of a vengeful madman...

This episode was definately twisted in the best possible way! Usually with shows of this genere, there are very predictable scripts which show up every time. There's always someone who has vision, one with a secret torturing them, a skeptic and so on... Also particular plot lines show up like the vampire, virgin hunter, yadda yadda but this episode was completely new! I have never seen or heard anything like it. As a result I was rivetited throughout the show. It was fascinating and fantastic! I truly learned something new and had a great time doing so. Kudos to the writers on a job well done!

Some crazy killer gets off on burning people to death.

This episode starts with the death of someone in a petrol station, they are burned to death when they touch a toy soldier. Apparently a few years ago they arrested a man responsible for theses crimes, he too left figures ehich caused people to burst into flames. So they believes it is capycat killer or they arrested and exicuted the wring man. And that is what it seems until Kolchak finds out that in fact the police agent in charge of the case became so obsessed with the killer that he had to start to kill people the same way. Anyway Kolchak saves the day. Really good episode had a twist, wasn't that predicatable.

BRING IT BACK!!!

Bring back NIGHT STALKER what in the world was the network thinking????? With only a few winners left on TV (i.e. House MD; Prison Break; Invasion), we lose one of the best? Night Stalker in the 70's with Darren McGavin was absolutely OUTSTANDING!!! I really think all the fans of this show need to unite and get this show back on the air!!!

Best one yet!

The show is improving fast which is a good thing since there is obviously a lot of potential in "Night Stalker". The opening of this episode was very well done and a sign of what can be achieved if time and work can be put in the show. The story was interesting and the characters well built. I particularly enjoyed Howard Gorn, the veteran somewhat sleazy reporter. I hope to see him in future episodes.
The only thing that bothered me was how predictable the storyline became at about halfway. But the climax still delivered even if the revelations were not surprising.
A good episode that shows "Night Stalker" can become an above average show. Lets hope it doesn’t get cancelled before that.

Spontaneous Combustion or a secret bio agent causes men to burn up from the inside. Is it other worldly? Heavens, no.

Once again the bad guy is human. This show portends to be about the pursuit of the other worldly. However, this is just not the case. The monsters here are no more real than the suited up guys from Scooby Doo. The actors here are very good and I think could pull off a much better show than this. However, the writing is letting them down.
The bad guy is once again telegraphed early. There is no surprise in the surprise.
The guest star who plays a rival newsman was really good. Hopefully, he sticks around to bring some life to this party.

Very predictable

I’m still not sure where I stand with this series. Every time I think I have a sense of where it’s going and how it’s going to progress, it comes along with an episode filled with predictability and precious little else. It also made me think about the central premise of the series and one of its more obvious flaws. That’s not something a struggling series should be doing.

Let me start with my thoughts on the premise. It occurred to me, during the final act, that Kolchak is an investigative crime reporter. That means that he’s good with the investigating, but in just about every other situation, he’s out of his element. This is not a particularly problematic character trait until he finds himself in the kind of situation that, say, law enforcement credentials (backup) and paraphernalia (a weapon or two) would facilitate.

As Kolchak is facing down the man with the instantly deadly biological agent, it struck me that Kolchak should be a dead man. He’s facing down a maniac with no reason to hold back. Instead of drawing his conclusions and tipping off the authorities after walking out the door with a false grin, he stands there and forces Mr. Psychotic to admit his complicity. That’s just not a good idea.

Now, I could buy it if Kolchak had some kind of established death wish. But that’s not where the character has been doing, exactly. He’s more in the “Mulder” mode, with a crusade that keeps him going and prevents him from having a death wish. Uncovering the truth is his mission, but that doesn’t necessarily translate into standing in the same room as the serial killer with no means of personal protection and forcing a confession.

My point is that Kolchak is a reporter, not an FBI agent, and the writers sometimes slip into the comfortable realm of “X-Files” plotting. This episode is filled with it. Substitute the co-workers at the Beacon with Skinner and some pompous agent, and suddenly this is a first season “X-Files” episode. And a fairly mediocre one, too, which is part of the problem. Perri even makes a passable “Scully” figure (and she’s hot!).

I’m also not impressed with Kolchak’s ability to work out psychology, which he really needs to understand in his line of work. I pegged Mr. Psychotic as the real killer about five seconds after Kolchak and Perri dropped off the file. The writers really telegraphed that one, and the structure didn’t suggest that such was the intent. It made Kolchak look very stupid, because Mr. Psychotic was practically handing him the truth for most of the episode.

So the end result is that Kolchak once again proves to his allies that there is more to the story than the consensual reality of the latest press release. And Kolchak recognizes something of Mr. Psychotic in himself. This happens every episode, so I think the point has been made. Kolchak could have fallen into darkness, we get that. Now show us why he didn’t, and in the process, don’t put him in the kind of position that a crime reporter shouldn’t survive.

One word: BORING!

Okay, I've been really trying to like this show; the original is one of my all time favorites. Four episodes now and nothing is going on! There is very little "supernatural" or drama for that matter. Where are the zombies and werewolves, the witches and ghosts. I have had quite enough of the "human" monster shows already on. This is coming down to a procedural show on crime reporters, and there are a glutton of procedural series on television at the present, we don't need another. I also agree with another reviewer here that the show could benefit greatly from a little comic relief. Just because the original series only lasted one season, doesn't indicate a failed concept. One only needs to realize the successes of Buffy, the X-files and Angel. I believe today's audiences would not care if these elements were present and with the budgets these days, it is entirely possible to make it work. Producers take note: grow a pair and do what was promised!

Predictable.

Very predictable ending but I did like the idea that Kolchak caught a glimpse of what he might become.

The ending seemed hurried and I think I would have liked it better if the identity of the villian was revealed earlier as any monkey could guess his identity and there was no shock value to finding out who he was.

I still prefer the idea of the original series - that Kolchak chased these stories for the truth alone, not some secret reason like the new Kolchak.

The series definately needs to crank up the humour level or this series is headed down the bowl quicker than you can say 2000 flushes.

When is this show going to get good?

I really want to like this show. I was a hugh fan of the X-Files, and while I have never seen the original Night Stalker, I have always wanted to. So far I have watched every episode of this new series, and I have yet to be entertained. This particular episode was a good example of why this show is failing to deliver.
First off, there is no supernatural element. There has only been one episode with a trully supernatural demension so far this year.
Secondly, it was painfully obvious where there were going with the plot. In fact, I even told my wife halfway through the episode, that it was not going to be the FBI agent, because they were making it too obvious and it was surely a red herring. Well, sure enough, it was the FBI agent. Surprise?
When is this show going to pull out the stops and give us trully supernatural, scary stories. They keep saying, "You won't believe they can do this on TV." So far they haven't done anything!

A solid episode with both story, theme and character.

With "Burning Man," the series really seems to be starting to come into its own. The "conspiracy of silence" that permeated the original series and birthed the "X-Files" shadowy puppetmsters gets a real retooling.

Higher ups and a seasoned reporter (William Lucking, to me alway Renny from Doc Savage: Man of Bronze) fill the same roles we saw in Las Vegas in the first Night Stalker TV movie, and it feels "right."

The mystery still has a bit of X-Files residue, but there are enough plot twists to make it interesting, and the (MINOR SPOILER?) introspection by Carl at the end suggests his back story may be darker than first expected. Is his FBI stalker accurate in his suppositions?

Aside: Anyone notice the resemblance to the sporadic words from Carl's Monologues that pop on the screen resemble the subtitles to Stephen Colbert's "The Word" segment?

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